Your Appointment - Patient Information

Appointments

You will need a referral letter from your General Practitioner (G.P.) in order to obtain an outpatient appointment. Please instruct your G.P. to post or send a referral through Healthlink as this is the most efficient methods of requesting appointments. We also accept referrals from other medical consultants and from the Accident and Emergency Department following assessment.

The referral letter should be addressed to:

Ophthalmology Appointments,

Central Appointments Office,

Cork University Hospital,

Wilton,

Cork

What happens after a referral letter is sent in?

The referral letters are registered on the Hospital database and then forwarded to the Consultant who reviews the request and decides on the most appropriate appointment schedule based on medical need and resources available.

Access

This department is situated near the Accident and Emergency department in Cork University Hospital. It is possible to access the department from all entrances, however, the Accident and Emergency entrance is the closest and also offers set down parking.

What will happen when I attend for my appointment?

Scheduled clinics are held daily on a Monday to Friday basis.

Please aim to arrive at the appointed time.

Always check in at the reception desk on arrival. Please inform staff at the time of check in if you have any disability. We can then make appropriate arrangements to facilitate your visit to our department.

Depending on your specific needs your appointment could take 3 - 4 hours. Often many tests are undertaken and therefore you may be seen by several members of staff – Doctor, Nurse, Orthoptist etc.

What to bring to your Outpatient Appointment

Your glasses – please bring both distance and reading glasses, a list of your regular drugs, drops and ointments. On your visit, your pupils may need to be dilated. If so, you will be advised not to drive for approximately six hours or until your pupils have returned to normal.

If you are unable to attend for your appointment or need to change it for any please contact our central appointments office on 021 4922660 as soon as possible.

An adult must accompany all children to the department. It is important that children are closely supervised at all times as many patients attending the department are visually impaired.

Please aim to arrive at the Hospital at your appointed time. The duration of your appointment can not be predetermined as it is dependent on what tests, examinations and treatments are required.

It is usually best to allocate half a day towards your appointment.

As we are a Teaching Hospital, medical students are, on occasions, in attendance at the outpatient clinics. You may be asked if one of these students, under supervision, may examine you and review your case notes. The decision to permit this is that of the patient.

On arrival to the Outpatients Department

All patients must check in at the reception desk. You will then be asked to take a seat and you will be called by a Nurse to have your vision checked. After your tests have been performed, you may require dilating drops to be put in your eyes to enable further examination.

You may be given a prescription, which you can obtain at your own local pharmacy. It is important that you follow instructions regarding your prescribed drops and medicines.

If you are diabetic please take your insulin/medication and meals as normal before you attend your appointment. It is also advised that you bring your insulin or medication if you are due to take them during your appointed time. Please bring a snack with you in case of delay or if you have special dietary needs.

On leaving the clinic please ensure that if you make your follow-up appointment if necessary.

To get the most from your visit you should:

Prepare a list of question you want to discuss

Bring a relative or friend with you as this may make you feel more comfortable

If you do not understand what your doctor is saying, please do not hesitate to ask him/her to explain again

Write down important points

Related Information

For further information relating to Ophthalmic Medicine please click on the link below: